Spanning the Haihe River beside the clock stands Jiefang Bridge — originally Wanguo Bridge (Bridge of Nations). Built with the same steel as Paris' Eiffel Tower, this architectural titan is hailed as China's living fossil of bridges.

On the sidelines of the Summit, Modi is also expected to hold bilateral talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, a meeting that will take place amid rising tensions with the US over trade tariffs and purchase of Russian oil.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit China to attend the regional summit SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) in Tianjin city from August 31 to September 1 - signalling another step towards normalising ties between the two nations.